CRA’s Statement on FDA Listening Session on CTP’s Strategic Plan

WASHINGTON, DC (August 22, 2023) – Andrew Perraut of Cigar Rights of America (CRA) presented today before a U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) panel as the agency works to develop a “Strategic Plan” for the Center for Tobacco Products (CTP) to guide its actions over the next five years. CRA’s oral and written testimony argued that premium cigars should be the agency’s lowest priority for action and enforcement moving forward.

Today’s listening session comes after last year’s Reagan-Udall Foundation (RUF) report, which found critical flaws in CTP’s prioritization. In response, FDA and CTP announced that they had developed five proposed goals that are aimed at addressing issues concerning: health equity, science, transparency, and stakeholder engagement.

As part of today’s proceedings, FDA invited interested parties to comment publicly on the strategic plan, including the proposed goals.

CRA emphatically made the case that FDA should prioritize regulatory action against those products that pose higher health and youth usage concerns. CRA continues to assert that the available government science reflects that premium cigars are correctly classified at the lowest level of what CTP has described as the “continuum of risk,” a model for categorizing tobacco products based on the public risk that the RUF has advocated for when making regulatory decisions. CRA further argued that seeking to impose additional regulations or re-regulations on the small-business premium cigar industry is an inappropriate use of FDA’s funds that won’t yield the population-based benefits the agency should focus its resources on.

Lastly, CRA implored CTP to follow the science and adopt a definition of premium cigars, especially at a time when there appears to be an emerging scientific, public health, and industry consensus that premium cigars must be treated as a distinct category for regulatory and research purposes. By adopting an agency-wide definition, CTP would be able to consider its regulation’s costs and benefits more clearly and direct its administrative and enforcement efforts toward products that pose the most significant risks to public health.

CRA appreciated the opportunity to speak at today’s listening session. Today’s listening session was an essential step in the process as CTP works to correct the systemic issues that the RUF report highlighted. CRA welcomes all opportunities and remains committed to working with CTP on its strategic plan as it relates to premium cigars.

About CRA

About Cigar Rights of America (CRA): Cigar Rights of America is a national advocacy organization dedicated to protecting the rights of consumers, retail tobacconists, suppliers, distributors, importers, and manufacturers of premium cigars. CRA works to promote and preserve the freedom to enjoy premium cigars.